Today is Thanksgiving

Today is the official observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. The original Thanksgiving holiday occurred 403 years ago.

Most of the attendees were member of a Christian radical religious separatist group we now call Pilgrim and their Wampanoag Indian neighbors. The Pilgrims were supposed to have gone to the already established English colony in Jamestown, Virginia; but being religious dissenters enroute to America they announced their intention to form their own separate colony on the Hudson. Their ship – the Mayflower – was damaged by storms and got badly off course. After a couple of weeks exploring the American coast they decided to disembark and land at Plymouth where they discovered an abandoned Indian village.

That first winter in New England was harsh – many Pilgrims died as the Pilgrims adjusted to the New England conditions while building homes. Fortunately, an English-speaking Indian with a taste for beer visited the group and introduced them to Squanto – another Native American who explorers had taken to England and returned. Squanto agreed to live with the Pilgrims and teach them what they needed to know to eek out a path to survival in the Americas. With Squanto's assistance the Pilgrims enjoyed a successful first harvest in America.

The Pilgrims were celebrating their first harvest and were so rowdy that the neighboring Wampanoag Indians went in force to investigate the shots being fired in the air. Arriving at Plymouth, they realized it was a celebration and not a war and were asked to join in. The Wampanoag brought six deer to the festivities that included fish, eels, mussels, turkey, and other foods in a week long feast. The Pilgrims gave thanks to God for them having survived their ordeal and for the bountiful harvest. Most of us have far more than they had and yet most of us lack the gratitude to God for our comfortable lives.

Where Indian and Pilgrim could sit down and enjoy a feast together, many families will be apart today because of some perceived slight or past insult. There are even some Americans who will avoid their family this Thanksgiving because their side did not win on the November 5 election.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) said in a statement on X: "As Thanksgiving approaches, let us take a moment to reflect on the many blessings we enjoy in our great state. This season reminds us to give thanks for our families, freedoms and the hardworking people who make Alabama so special."